I’ve broken down the mechanics of pricing in-n-out and upside-down on this blog.  But, delivering a price to a customer – no matter how well-matched to your market, target client, and services – can fail miserably if you lack confidence.  Being confident in what you do and how you service individuals is paramount to being able to ask for money.  So what do you do if you’re a little weak in this department?  Here are…

Credit: Christian Perez, Toro_33 (flickr) - Creative Commons License

10 Ways to Gain Confidence

  1. Have a sense of ENTITLEMENT.
    Take note: entitlement does not equal arrogance.  Entitlement means that you know who you are and what you are worth.  “Of course, I’m worth my $20,000 fee.  I am entitled to it because of X, Y, and Z.”
  2. Take on a leadership role.
    Becoming a leader – in anything – is incredibly empowering.  Be a director of a wedding organization, become a host of Thursday Therapy, volunteer to take on a PTA committee.  By being a leader you become ‘elevated’.  And, this feeling of ‘elevation’ will carry on into your sales consults.
  3. Mobilize people into action.
    Get people fired up about something.  Start a movement.  When you are the instigator, much like being a leader, people look up to you as a mover-and-shaker.  Check out Tara Bliven’s Elevated Envelope… she’s started a creative movement internationally and I love the strides she’s made in the stationery world on account of it.
  4. Do something scary.
    Scared of jumping out of plane (with a parachute, of course)?  Then, do it!  Doing something scary allows us to break down barriers.  It builds strength.  It allows us to say, “I can do this.  I’m not scared!”
  5. Practice your delivery!
    Practice, practice, practice.  I’ve never been very good at the idea of practicing in front of a mirror.  I like to practice amongst my peers.  And, the best place to practice is at networking events.  At any industry mixer, you are selling yourself lightly.  This is a great place to practice your elevator pitch.  They shouldn’t even know you’re practicing… just try out your ‘shtick’ on a few people and see what catches their attention and what does not.
  6. Statements should not sound like questions.
    This is a weakness of women more than men.  (Sorry, ladies, for the generalization.)  Do you find that your sentences get higher pitched at the end?  Does it sound like you are asking a question instead of making a statement?  Time to reexamine how you deliver your pitch.  Make sure you have strength in what you say and HOW you say it.
  7. Don’t make excuses.
    Don’t ever make excuses for your pricing.  Often we try to justify our worth before anyone has even asked us.  Give your price and don’t flinch.  (See #1 and #5.)
  8. Accept compliments.
    Do you poo-poo compliments?  (We all do to some degree.)  A great way to build confidence is to start accepting the casual compliments that people pay you on a daily basis. Pro 1: “You look great!”  Pro 2: “Thank you! I feel great!”  See how different that is.  Try it.
  9. Know that there is ‘always cheaper’ but you have value that ‘cheaper’ cannot bring.
    I owe complete copyright credit to Saundra Hadley, fabulous sales coach extraordinaire, for teaching me this one.  Here’s how it works:
    You: And the cost for these services is $10,000.
    Client:  WOW!  That’s expensive.
    You: I realize that I am not the least expensive option you will be considering.  And, here’s why… (list all of the amazing things that make you better (MORE VALUABLE) than someone else.)
  10. Learn your finances so that you have greater control over your $$$$$$$$.
    Often we are scared of talking about money because we don’t understand money.  Learn your accounting and finances so that you can make decisions with your money and so that discussing money with clients isn’t a scary thing.

What do you think?  What are some other ways that you’ve been able to build confidence?  Share with us in a comment below.